This madcap new racing game from Empire Interactive deserves to be one of the hits of the year. Those of you who remember the old zippy racing favourite Micro Machines will have some idea of what you’re in for here. The action is not only top-down, but all the players must keep up with the leader to stay in the same frame and therefore the race. When they are ousted, the losers are down but not quite out, since they can change the outcome of a contest by firing various weapons at those still battling it out for pole position. The dastardly arsenal ranges from missiles, flares and flamethrowers to mines, barrel bombs and chaos-causing oil slicks.

The races are lightning quick — they are usually completed in under a minute — but are a riot while they last. The game suits all ages and the controls are easy to master, even if the handling of the racers is a tad flighty. There are just over a dozen courses to race.

Mashed may not scoop plaudits for delivering the most spectacular crash sequences, the loudest explosions or the most accurate racetracks, but it does enough to provide an entertaining diversion from more serious sporting events in the real world.

Tim Wapshott